Wife Says Husband Refused to Pay Her Medical Bills After Giving Birth Because She "Caved" and Got an Epidural

A woman sparked outrage online when she shared an experience she had with her husband after giving birth to their first child. A 32-year-old reddit user ignited fierce criticism against her spouse when she revealed he refused to help pay for $8,000 in medical bills.

The unidentified woman explained how her marriage was crumbling because her husband didn't feel he should contribute to the hospital bills because she "caved" and got an epidural. In the now deleted post, readers jumped to the defense of the woman and demanded she leave him. 

Couple Split Bills Equally

The original poster shared how the couple split everything evenly when it comes to bills and things were great in their marriage until this incident. "We've been married 7 years now and decided it was time to expand our family. Everything was going well and we were in our little newborn bubbly of bliss until the hospital bills came. Both my husband and I have jobs and everything financially is split 50/50, but we've always kept our money separate with the exception of a joint account for bills."

Husband Encouraged the Epidural

The woman explained that while she wanted to have a natural birth, she ended up wanting an epidural, which her 35-year-old husband didn't discourage. "Throughout the duration of my pregnancy, I planned to go for an unmedicated natural birth with as little intervention as possible. That was up until I hit the 24 hour mark of labor, I caved and got the epidural (which I was open to having if needed). My husband had no problem with it, even encouraged it."

Why Her Husband Refused to Pay for the Medical Bills for the Birth of Their Child

The woman's husband was rather open about why he didn't want to pay for the hospital bill and had no shame in telling his wife to pay for it herself. She said, "When the bill came he brought it to me to pay all $8,000+ (after insurance) from my personal savings, I asked why. He said "You're the one that couldn't hold out for a few more hours and jacked up the bill with all your meds and an extra night's stay and he shouldn't have to pay for all of my extra requests. If I wanted luxury, I should expect to pay for it."

Woman Was Called a "Princess" For Wanting an Epidural

In a shocking reveal, the woman stated how her husband told her since she demanded additional services, which is what raised the bill. "I was stunned, and flipped out," she admitted. "I'll spare you the details. He refuses to budge, calling me a princess for expecting him to pay for all the "extra add ons" I requested in the hospital."

A List of Luxuries the Woman Asked For

On the screenshot that was reposted on Reddit, a commenter remembered the original post and shared what the woman's husband considered luxury. "I wish I could post a photo I took of her only comment on that post. But she detailed the list of "luxuries" that were on the bill that she didn't need and got anyway, to justify why he wasn't paying for it.

–The epidural (she was in labor 14 additional hours after it, but since she had already went 24 hours without it, she should have been able to make it)

–Lactation consultant (she should have read more books on her own about it)

–The nursery fee ("it's our baby, so he should stay in the room with us no matter how sleep deprived we are")

–The extra stay over night (that was encouraged by the medical staff for her recovery and exhaustion)

–The food she ate ("I should've packed snacks because I knew it was going to be long")

–Postpartum supplies (because "I should've brought my own")

–When they did blood testing, she requested a specific test for something that runs in her family so it was her fault."

Marriage on the Rocks

The woman confessed her marriage isn't in a good place as a result of this situation and asked for advice. "Okay coming here as a last resort because I genuinely think this problem could be the end of my marriage." She added, "This is by far the biggest issue in our 14 year long relationship so far and I'm so lost on where to go from here. I gave in and paid the bill, but since then we haven't been talking much and honestly I just feel disrespected. Do I have the right to feel this way or is it just hormones?"

Commenters Flooded the Post with Hateful Remarks Towards the Husband

Although the original post on Reddit is now deleted, a screenshot was taken and reposted on the platform as well as Twitter, which people commented on. One person wrote, "Yeah sorry she needs to take that baby and go. They'll do much better without that man." Someone else commented on the Tweet, "I hope she dumps him. He will never change, only become more abusive." Another person added, "Mom & baby did all the work and after 10 months 24hours into labor could not take the excruciating pain & got the epidural. Sperm investor feels mom should pay the entire 8 k for epidural. Ok mr 50/50. Did u at least have ur genitalia, armpit's & nostrils waxed on the hospital."

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"He Should Also Carry the Baby for 4.5 Months"

Another commenter stated, "50/50 means he should also carry the baby for 4.5 months and half the pain she was in?!?! WHAT" One person wrote, "He can pay $8000 now or child support for 18 years. Horrible move by him." A Reddit user wrote, "I am so angry reading all of this. This cannot be real life. I've heard some crazy things in my day, but this… I'm honestly LIVID. This is no man. This is a child. He has no business being a husband. I really hope she lets people she knows what an incredible POS this guy is to itemize his wife's hospital bill like this. She honestly needs to get out now. It's not going to get better."